Press Release for Monday, March 24, 2003

Creator of Pretty Good Privacy to Speak at UNF

Philip Zimmermann, the creator of the software Pretty Good Privacy, will speak on "Total Information Awareness" on Thursday, April 17, at 7:30 p.m. at the University Center on the University of North Florida campus.

The lecture is free and open to the public. His talk is part of the UNF Distinguished Voices Lecture Series.

Before 9/11, rapidly advancing technology already was the greatest threat to individual privacy. Since then, deliberate policy based on application of these advances is an even greater threat to privacy. Zimmermann will discuss this threat by using Moore's Law, which says that computing power doubles about every 18 months. That means that the ability of computers to keep track of us is quickly expanding, and changes in policy further the threat to privacy.

Zimmermann is a privacy advocate. PGP, which was released to the world in 1991, is widely used to encrypt e-mail for privacy. The U.S. government investigated Zimmermann during a three-year criminal investigation because it said export restrictions for cryptographic software were violated with the release of PGP. The case was dropped in 1996.

Zimmermann is a special adviser and consultant for PGP Corp., and works as a consultant on cryptographic issues for companies and industry organizations. He also is a fellow at Stanford Law School's Center for Internet and Society.

His honors and awards include: induction into the CRN Industry Hall of Fame in 2001; Louis Brandeis Award from Privacy International, 1999; Chrysler Award for Innovation in Design, 1995; and the Pioneer Award from the Electronic Frontier Foundation, 1995.

Zimmermann will be available for media interviews before the event, and a photo is available.

For more information, contact UNF's Office of News and Publications at (904) 620-2140.